About the Book
-
Author:
- Mackenzie Reed
- Genres:
- Boy-Girl Romance
- Contemporary
- Mystery
- Suspense
- Voices:
- Cis Girl
- Straight
- White (Non-Specified)
Cover Story: Puzzle Pieces
BFF Charm: Peas in a Pod
Talky Talk: Nancy Drew-ish
Bonus Factors: Creepy Estate, Tournaments
Relationship Status: Stay Cool
Content Warning: The Wilde Trials features memories of and conversations about a dead brother and the grief that comes along with losing a loved one.
Cover Story: Puzzle Pieces
Every element on this cover is something that’s featured in the story. It’s a great compilation that says “This is a mystery book!” while still being lovely. And the lit flashlight totally makes me think of the classic Nancy Drew covers, which is never a bad thing,
The Deal:
Chloe Gatti is the best. At everything. Or, she feels like she has to be. Attending the prestigious Wilde Academy as the only scholarship student makes her feel the need to prove that she belongs, that she’s better than all of the kids who are there because of their parents and their family’s status or money. She’s done everything she can to make herself near-perfect (even going so far as cheating on a math exam to make sure her grades don’t slip from the top spot). The final test is the Wilde Trials, a series of seven mentally, emotionally, and physically taxing events for 12 of the school’s seniors, the winner of which will go home with $600,000 and the prestige of being named Champion.
But then Chloe receives a threatening note that references her cheating—something she didn’t think anyone knew about—and the same mysterious individual thwarts her attempts to win. Chloe will do anything to reach the top, but what if that means losing everything … including her life?
BFF Charm: Peas in a Pod
Chloe reminded me, uncomfortably, of my high school self. Although I never stooped to cheating, I definitely worked hard to stay at the top of my high school’s ranking. (I ended up being one of seven valedictorians. Our school was weird.) In an alternate universe where I was forced to truly compete with my peers, I likely would have leaned into my competitive nature much like Chloe did and become someone I didn’t quite like. I liked Chloe, though, because I got to know her through her own thoughts, many of which showed that she wasn’t actually willing to cross moral lines. (Save for the cheating, but …) She’s someone who can’t quite see past high school, and I felt the same way. It wasn’t until I got to college that I realized I could get a C and the world didn’t end. I could change my mind on what I wanted to do with my life without people judging me for “giving up.” I know Chloe’s going to realize the same thing once she’s away from the Wilde Academy’s suffocating atmosphere.
Swoonworthy Scale: 6
When the Trials start, Chloe is frustrated to see that she’ll be competing against her ex, Hayes Stratford, who swore he’d never take part after the death of his brother in the same event three years prior. She wants nothing to do with him (*eyeroll*), but when the blackmail threat literally lands in her room, she realizes that she needs at least one ally. So they make a truce … a truce that leads, obviously, to the two needing to rely on each other more and more.
Talky Talk: Nancy Drew-ish
Chloe is an entertaining narrator who toes the line between being too quick to figure out elements of the situation she’s in (answers to the mystery) and obtuse while remaining a believable teenage protagonist. The other characters are less developed, and I particularly found it difficult to understand what she saw in Hayes; even when we were told why he was great, the showing wasn’t quite there. The story as a whole is nicely twisty without veering too far into slasher territory, and even when things go dire, I didn’t question too much why a school led by adults (one assumes) who pay insurance premiums would let teens wander into the forest to risk their lives.
Bonus Factor: Creepy Estate
The Wilde Trials see Chloe and the rest of her fellow competitors staying in an aging estate, parts of which are literally walled off because of damage. It made me a bit sad that they’ve let this lovely house go to seed, but it was also fun to read about the manor’s secrets, and the original inhabitants.
Bonus Factor: Tournaments
Although Chloe risks her life more than once during the Trials, and not only because of the person trying to thwart her, I still found myself wishing I could be part of such an event. Scavenger hunts and riddles, roughing it for a night (while having a bathroom to return to), rock climbing—all sounds like quite a lot of fun.
Relationship Status: Stay Cool
It was great to spend time with you, Book. You made me both nostalgic for a bygone era and grateful that I’m now an adult who (tries to) goes easier on herself and has long since realized that high school grades don’t really mean anything in the real world. I wish you all the best, and can’t wait to see where life takes you. You’re going to kill it (figuratively)!
Literary Matchmaking
Reed’s debut, The Rosewood Hunt, is also about a group of high school seniors questing to find a fortune.
Jennifer Lynn Barnes’s Inheritance Games series features a mysterious estate where the main character is tasked with solving a series of complex tasks.
Kate Racculia’s Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts is an adult book about scavenger hunt-type trials and spooky houses with secrets.
FTC Full Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Storytide, but got neither a private dance party with Tom Hiddleston nor money in exchange for this review. The Wilde Trials is available now.
